Something Scary
by generalquistis
Summary: It's October 31. Near decides to throw a little Halloween party in honor of L's birthday. Things begin to get a little scary for Halle and Gevanni, though.


Something Scary

By generalquistis

oOoOo

"It's Halloween!" Gevanni announced one late afternoon of October 31 as he entered the SPK headquarters. He just got back from his spying gig on Teru Mikami. Near summoned him and Halle back to the HQ for an "important meeting" and advised them to excuse themselves from all other appointments that may keep them preoccupied for the evening.

Gevanni thought that maybe Near planned on a Halloween party.

Apparently not.

Upon arrival at the HQ, he saw a lot of candles around the place and the boy was seated in the middle of the room within a circle of Zoids and Gundam robots. A white blanket was draped over his head and he appeared to be kneeling. The atmosphere made Gevanni feel a little uncomfortable when he saw that the entire HQ had transformed into a ritualistic hide-out.

He turned to a corner and there was Anthony Lester holding a candle and dressed in a Frankenstein costume. Gevanni wanted to laugh at his colleague but seeing the warning look on his face made him think twice about doing so.

Near turned to Gevanni. "There you are. Put on your costume." He said in a casual manner.

Gevanni smiled at him. "Is this a Halloween party?" he asked. Work has tied him down so much that all he wanted to do was get an opportunity to party… even if Near was to host it.

"It's L's birthday today." Near answered with a serious tone before referring to Lester. "Please give Gevanni his costume." He instructed.

Lester handed some black garments over to Gevanni. "Get changed. We'll wait here." He said.

The moment Gevanni exited for the changing room, Halle arrived and her reaction upon entering the room did not differ from his. "What is going on?" she asked, although unsure.

"We are celebrating L's birthday." Near said.

Halle studied the look on Near's face. He seemed serious about the matter so she just kept quiet. However, she felt a surge of panic when she heard him instruct Lester to hand her the costume.

"Costume?" Halle asked.

"You need to be in costume for the celebration. It's tradition." Near said before he began twirling a lock of his hair again. "Back in Wammy's House, we used to celebrate L's birthday together with Halloween. But the celebration is more geared towards L's birthday rather than Halloween. I would like to continue the tradition even though I'm not in Wammy's House anymore. Besides, L is a very special person. We need to honor him." He explained.

Halle went over to Lester to get her costume. Judging from the headdress that came with it, Near wanted her to dress up like Cleopatra. She felt uncomfortable about putting on a costume like that but to avoid agitating the boy, she just decided to keep quiet and oblige. On her way out of the room, Gevanni arrived wearing his costume.

He was dressed as a cockroach.

Immediately, Halle's eyes widened and she immediately took several steps backward.

Near smiled when he saw Gevanni. "Perfect." He said pleasantly.

Gevanni had an uncomfortable look on his face. "I know it's October and we're in an air-conditioned room but it's really hot inside this costume." He explained. He turned to Halle who was giving him a shocked stare. He smirked. "Oh, hi, Halle. Who are you going to be this Halloween?" he asked brightly as he waved one cockroach leg at her (where one of his hands was inserted as a sleeve).

She shuddered as a look of disdain replaced the shocked look on her face.

Gevanni noticed her repulsion. "Huh? What's wrong? Don't I look snazzy?" he asked, twirling around so she can look at the entire costume.

She cringed. The costume was very detailed that if Gevanni's face was covered, one would think that it was a giant mutated cockroach.

Near smiled proudly. "It's very realistic, don't you think? I chose that from a catalogue of expensive costumes and ordered it the moment I saw it. I thought it would fit Gevanni very well." He explained.

Gevanni face-faulted. "What do you mean it would fit me very well?" he asked, feeling a little offended.

Halle moved aside and decided to trail against the wall as she made her way quietly yet quickly to the exit.

"I think she's afraid of cockroaches." Near said while twirling his hair.

"You _think_?" Lester asked.

Near could not help but smirk. "Make sure she comes back in here. Gevanni, why don't you follow her to ensure that she won't run away?" he asked.

Without thinking, Gevanni just obeyed and went after Halle. There was only one bathroom in the hallway so he waited outside without even informing her that he was there.

A few moments later, Halle came out of the bathroom wearing the Cleopatra costume but she froze when she saw Gevanni.

He smiled.

She made a shooing gesture.

He blinked as his smile faded. "You're afraid of roaches?" he asked in disbelief. The tough chick fears something after all. It made him feel amused inside and he could not help but smile again.

She pushed him aside and ran back inside the room where Near was waiting.

Gevanni went after her. "Halle! Wait for me!" he called out with a tiny sing-song voice, trying to imitate how he though smaller roaches would sound if they could talk.

Halle made it ahead back in Near's office and she made sure to lock the automatic door as soon as she got in. She was quiet but she was obviously pale and shaking. She never screamed nor spoke of the fear that was eating her inside.

"What are you doing? We can't go on with the ceremony without Gevanni." Near said.

Halle shook her head. "I think Gevanni would be fine outside." She stated flatly.

Lester was watching Gevanni through the monitor connected to the surveillance camera outside the door. He was amazed at his costume. "Good choice with the costume, Near. He does look like a giant cockroach!" he said. "Too bad his face isn't covered." He remarked.

"You see? I'm right." Near said.

Halle swallowed hard. "Why pick a cockroach? He could have been… Dracula or a Werewolf… or Spiderman!" she remarked while trying to keep a straight face. "Yes, I think Spiderman would fit him well." She suggested.

Near stood up and removed the white blanket that was covering his entire body including the top of his head. He was dressed in a costume with a red cape that dominated the entire ensemble and a red bandanna around his head. "Because I'm the only one who's supposed to be dressed in red, so Spiderman is out of the question." he said sternly.

Halle stared at his costume unbelievably. "Vincent Valentine!" she mouthed. It's the character from Final Fantasy VII. "Okay… uh… but Gevanni should stay outside." She said.

Near stared blankly at her before shaking his head in disagreement. "No. We need Gevanni in here." He said with a tone that made Halle realize that he was serious. She took a deep breath while trying to maintain her composure as she slowly entered the code to unlock the automatic door.

Gevanni greeted Halle with a smile. "Hey," he greeted coolly as he waved one roach leg at her where his right arm was.

She breathed in and stepped aside so he can enter.

As soon as everybody was settled around Near outside the circle of Zoids and Gundam robots, Near knelt down again and closed his eyes. "We begin." He announced with a low voice. "With sincerity from our hearts, we would like to pray for the soul of L Lawliet who passed away…" he began to pray, which made Gevanni and Lester think that he seemed like a different person that night.

The clock struck 6 just when Near ended his prayer with the words, "…and God will place his judgment on the sinners."

They could hear the beeping of the electronic clocks indicating that it was already 6. The clocks would always do that, but on that particular evening, the atmosphere of the room provided an entirely creepy feeling to the sounds. Gevanni was just thankful that they did not mimic the sound of church bells or the grandfather's clock; otherwise, it would be creepier.

Near closed his eyes for a few moments and then opened them again . "One of you is not praying." He declared.

The room was suddenly quiet. They could not even the sound of the soft humming of the air-conditioning unit anymore.

Halle was still looking disdainfully at Gevanni. "I'm sorry, Near, I cannot pray when… this _thing _is present in the room." She told him.

Gevanni frowned at her. "What _thing_?" he asked.

"You _thing_!" she finally let out a helpless wail as she shuddered and wrapped her arms around herself and then moved away from Gevanni.

Near smiled. "Interesting. You have a phobia." He pointed out in amusement.

"I just don't like insects." She answered stiffly.

Near lowered his gaze to the ground. "You don't?" he asked.

"I don't. So I'm sorry if that bothers you but I really don't like them." She said bluntly.

"I thought you're one brave young lady, Halle." Near said. "I just want everyone to enjoy Halloween." He told her.

The three other SPK members were not able to understand what Near meant by his last line. "Well then, you may go back to your rooms. I'll call for you when I need to. I just need to pray first." He said, dismissing them. "Except for you, _Frankenstein_. You're staying here." He pointed out to Lester.

Lester nodded, although he felt odd that Near referred to him as _Frankenstein_.

oOoOo

When Halle entered her quarters, she saw Mello sitting on her bed while watching a horror flick on TV. Meanwhile, Matt was on the floor and busily playing a game on his PSP while listening to some tunes on his iPod. The two boys looked up from their respective activities to gape at Halle. When they did so, there was a simultaneous scream coming from the TV.

Matt was the first one to react. "Wow." He said in amusement.

"Please tell your friend that it's rude to stare." Halle pointed out to Mello as she shut the door and walked over to her closet to get a jacket to cover herself up.

Mello threw a pillow over at Matt to make him stop staring. "Why are you dressed as Cleopatra anyway?" he asked her.

"It's Near. We're doing a commemorative Halloween bash for L." Halle explained.

Mello blinked. "Oh. Right. It's L's birthday today." He said mindlessly.

"You don't look happy though." Matt told Halle.

"Who would be happy if one of their colleagues is wearing a big cockroach costume?" Halle asked.

Mello guffawed. "Hey, Matt! D'ya hear that? You used to wear _that_ cockroach costume for Halloween back at the House!" he said as he pulled the headset off Matt's head so he could hear.

Matt blinked, seemingly clueless at first but then his face lit up. "Oh yeah. Right. Back at Wammy's House, I was the cockroach because nobody wanted to wear the costume." He told Halle rather proudly.

She nodded weakly. "Er… that's nice." She remarked with a disgusted look.

Mello looked at the ceiling with a reminiscent stare. "Yep. Those were the days." He said.

Then, the electricity began to fluctuate until it finally died.

The room was quiet for a few moments before Matt made a remark. "It's too dark in here."

"Of course it is." Mello said as he made a move to get out of bed. "Hey Halle, got any flashlights or anything that…" he trailed off when he felt and heard something crunch underneath his foot when he settled it on the floor.

Halle gasped when she heard the crunch and she scurried away from her spot.

"What was that?" Matt asked as he brought out his lighter to check. Mello lifted his foot from the floor and saw that he stepped on a roach.

Halle was so mortified but she could not react properly. Instead, she just turned away.

Mello amusedly eyed the squished insect. "Haha. Speaking of the devil." He said.

"Clean it up, will you?" Halle told him.

Matt put out the flame from his lighter. "How come there's a black-out?" he asked.

"I'm not sure." Halle replied uncomfortably.

"It's just like in Wammy's House. Every Halloween. L likes to scare all of us by turning out all the lights and then…" Mello trailed off when they heard the creaking of the door opening.

"Halle, you there?"

It was Gevanni.

Halle panicked for Mello and Matt's sake but the two boys managed to keep quiet instantly.

"…Stephen?" she inquired, calling out his first name.

"Er… yeah. What was that noise? I thought I heard someone…" he said.

"What? Someone?" she asked, trying to sound clueless.

"Like a man talking." Gevanni described.

"What are you talking about? Is the darkness making you hear things that aren't really supposed to be there?" she teased.

"Haha. Very funny. At least I'm not the one who's afraid of bugs." He said.

She took a deep breath. "Anyway, what happened to the electricity?" she asked, deciding not to argue with him about her little phobia anymore.

"I don't know. That's why I came here. Maybe we can go ask Near." He said.

"Why not ask him yourself?" she asked.

"I thought we'd go together." He replied.

Halle was quiet for a few moments before saying, "You're just afraid of groping your way through the dark."

"I'm not." He replied stubbornly.

Something brushed against Halle's waist so she gasped and rushed to where she remembered that the door was located. She bumped against Gevanni and the feel of his costume against her skin made her push him away. "Oh gross! It feels like the real thing!!!" she remarked in disgust.

"Please don't push me like that again!" Gevanni said helplessly as he struggled to regain his balance.

"Let's go find Near and check if he's okay." She said, ignoring his statement.

The two of them began to grope their way through the dark hallway leading to the room where they last saw Near. "You know, I'm more uncomfortable in this costume now that it's dark and there's a power failure." He said.

"Then go strip off somewhere." She suggested. Anything to get him out of that hideous costume.

"I don't think I can do that. It's going to disappoint Near. I don't want that to happen." Gevanni explained.

"Then grab a Batman costume and switch into that." she said. "Better yet, dress up like yourself and claim you're a serial killer. After all, serial killers look like everyday normal people." She stopped walking and pondered about what she just said. "They look like everyday normal people." She mumbled.

Gevanni did not realize that she stopped walking already so he ended up bumping against her.

She hissed in disgust when she felt one roach leg brush against her skin. "I said keep away!" she said warningly as she stepped aside.

"Sorry! I didn't know you stopped." He said. He was expecting another reaction from her but he realized that the entire area was suddenly silent. He had to admit he was feeling uneasy with the silence. "Halle?" he called out.

Then he heard a snicker. "You sound agitated," she pointed out.

He sighed in relief. "I thought you disappeared like the wall swallowed you up or something!" he pointed out.

"Your imagination is too vivid." She said. "Hey you remember that Light Yagami guy? He fits the description of those people." She said.

"What _those_ people? What?" he asked, confused. He was more concerned on not bumping against anything again rather than thinking about serial killers and criminal profiles.

"People who are more likely to become serial killers. Straight-A students. Neatly-dressed individuals. Respectful people. Good-looking. Neat. Obsessive-compulsive…" she began to enumerate.

"Well the criteria fits the guy Near asked me to follow, too." He explained.

"Excuse me."

The two of them froze when they heard a low and slightly raspy voice that spoke from behind them. They began to run the quality of the voice through their minds and they realized that they do not know whom it belongs to.

"Pardon me," the voice repeated.

"Yes, sir?" Halle asked. Apparently she was the one who had the guts to respond because Gevanni was already freaking out in silence. "Who's that, who's that, who's that?" he was rambling in his mind.

"I'm looking for Near." Said the voice.

Halle wondered who it really was but it was too dark to see. "Who are you?" she asked.

Her question was followed with a long silence before the voice broke it by revealing its owner's identity: "Erald."

"Erald?" Gevanni echoed.The name was very unfamiliar to him.

"How do you know Near?" Halle asked.

"He's a good friend. I came all the way from England just to visit him here. He said he wanted me to help with the investigation." Erald answered.

"Well, I'd like to see some identification…" but Gevanni trailed off when he realized how pitch black it was around them.

"I'm afraid that won't be possible because it's pitch black in here. But I promise, I'll show you my ID once we get some little light." Erald answered reassuringly.

Halle and Gevanni could not understand it but for some reason, they felt at ease with the man and that they could truly trust him.

"Alright then. Please follow us." Halle said.

"How would I know where you're going? It's dark?" Erald asked.

"Just follow our voices." Gevanni explained.

"Alright. Thank you. The two of you are nice. I'm glad Near hired people like you to help him out." Erald answered.

Gevanni and Halle did not know how to react to that remark. They were not even sure whether to take that as a compliment.

"Ah. Thank you." Gevanni said gratefully, deciding to finally take it as a compliment. "So, Mr. Erald. How were you able to know Near? I'm actually surprised he has friends." He pointed out.

"From way back. Childhood. Although I'm much older than he is; I've seen him grow up. We've had a lot of good times together back at the House." Erald explained.

"Oh so you grew up in the same orphanage with him?" Halle asked.

"Yes."

"So what's your job, Mr. Erald?" she asked. She figured that maybe she should interview him.

"I'm a detective." The man answered.

"A detective!" Gevanni exclaimed in amusement. "No wonder you and Near are friends!" he said.

And his statement was followed by silence. The only sounds he could hear were his own footsteps and Halle's. He wondered if Erald was walking carefully or was barefoot… and then a thought entered his mind that maybe the man was floating—that's why there are only 2 sets of footsteps that can be heard.

"Uh… Mr. Erald?" Gevanni inquired.

Halle stopped walking when her hands felt the first door to her right. She knocked. "Lester?" she called out.

"Halle?" Lester responded.

She smiled. "Here we go. We're here, Mr. Erald." She announced.

Silence.

"Mr. Erald?" Gevanni asked.

They felt a brush of cold air against their arms. "Please take care of Near." Said Erald.

The two were stunned. "Huh?" Gevanni reacted in confusion.

Halle suddenly felt nervous. "…Mr. Erald," she began.

But there was no response.

Halle and Gevanni's hearts began to race as they felt the hairs at the back of their necks raising.

Then, the electricity came back. The lights of the hallway flickered until they were fully switched on again. They heard the soft hum of the air-conditioning unit and got a whiff of its air. Then they heard the automatic door open from behind them.

"Are you two okay? Who were you talking to?" Lester asked.

Halle and Gevanni looked inside the room first before deciding to come in. They saw Near still sitting within the circle of Zoids and Gundam robots wearing his Vincent Valentine costume. However, this time, he was already playing with an Ouija board.

"This thing isn't working at all." Near mumbled in frustration before setting the Ouija board aside. "I think I'll just play with the Tarot cards." He turned to Halle and Gevanni. "Would you like me to tell your fortunes?" he inquired.

Halle and Gevanni looked at the boy. "…Do you know any Erald, Near?" the latter inquired bluntly. He figured that one of them had to ask Near.

The name made Near stare at them with his wide black eyes in a very stunned manner. His right hand reached up to his head and he began to mindlessly twirl his hair again. "Why?" he asked.

"We just… met with a man named Erald who claimed that he knew you from the orphanage. It was during the blackout while we were on our way here to check if you're okay." Gevanni explained.

Halle nodded. "We didn't see his face, though, because it's really dark." She added.

Lester noticed the look on Near's face. The boy looked unconvinced at first and then he smiled smugly while shaking his head in a "no".

"Nice try for trying to scare me, you two. But you can't. Anyway, Happy Halloween." Near said in sarcasm.

Halle and Gevanni were dumbfounded.

Near stopped twirling his hair but he maintained eye contact with the two. "Erald is dead." He revealed. "The name is one of L's false names that he used when he was still alive."

oOoOo

When Halle returned to her room, she found Mello snacking on a Twix bar on her bed while watching another horror movie on cable. Matt was lying on the floor and playing another game on his PSP while mumbling-singing Warrant's_Cherry Pie_, which was playing on his iPod.

As soon as she shut the door, she went over to Mello and snatched the Twix bar from his grasp. Mello looked up at her in disbelief. "Hey!" he snapped.

"How dare you try to scare me and Gevanni by pretending to be L!" she told him in annoyance.

Mello looked at her unbelievably. "What?" he asked in surprise.

Matt looked up at Halle and Mello before pausing his music. "…I heard L's name. What happened?" he asked.

"Matt and I were just here waiting for you and the electricity to return." Mello explained.

Halle just stared at Mello. He seemed sincere. It was the same with Matt. With that, she shakily handed the Twix bar back to Mello before proceeding to her bathroom so she can take a long warm shower.

Mello shook his head in disbelief. "Can you believe her? Accusing me of scaring her and that Stephen? Hah." He rolled his eyes.

"Yeah. We don't just go using the name of the dead to scare other people—that's what Watari told us." Matt said.

Mello took a bite out of his Twix bar again. "Yeah. And of all people, I wouldn't use L. I respect him that much to make fun of him like that…" he trailed off when the TV reception suddenly went on static. He could not understand why that event gave him goosebumps.

Matt, on the other hand, was amused. "Hey, you know that movie with the cursed videotape and the girl that comes out of the well?" he asked.

Mello suddenly felt nervous. "Ah shaddap!" he snapped defensively. "And stop playing and just spy on that Misa girl." He mumbled as he grabbed the remote to switch off the TV but it was not working.

"Halle! You need to change the batteries of this thing!" Mello called out.

And the electricity died again.

"Aw shit! Not again!" Mello whined.

Matt continued to play with his PSP while listening to the songs from his iPod.

Mello remained on the bed in silence, trying hard not to think of anything scary. He hated the fact that Halloween never fails to make anyone think of scary things whenever it is around.

"Mello,"

His eyes widened further when he heard a low and raspy voice calling his name from somewhere in the room. Convinced that it's Matt (even though he could obviously hear Matt singing softly along with the same song on his iPod), he threw a pillow at him.

"Ah! Hey, what did you do that for?" Matt demanded.

They heard the bathroom door opening followed by Halle's voice. "Yet another blackout." She said.

"Halle, do me a favor. Just stay here and don't leave us!" Mello said.

"Why?" she asked.

"Just… stay here!" Mello replied.

Silence.

"This is boring." Halle mumbled.

Then, Matt was suddenly enlightened. "Hey, wanna hear something scary?" he began.

"NO!" the two responded in unison with a disdainful tone.

oOoOo

-end-

Author's Note: I wrote this without even thinking of how I want it to end and how I want it to go. It's like a writing exercise that supposed to be Halle-centric but it eventually ended up like this.


End file.
